J
Jeanh
Guest
With smartphones and other mobile computing devices changing rapidly, you may have wanted to switch from an Android device to iPhone or iPhone to Android for some time. But the likelihood is that you’ve been put off by the thought of transferring your data between devices. Well, it’s not as complex and teeth grindingly frustrating as it used to be. In fact, it can now be startlingly simple.
Switching from iPhone to Android
So it’s time to switch your iPhone to an Android device? With something like 18,000 different Android mobile device models available and well over one billion Android phones in circulation, you’re certainly part of a swelling crowd.
If you don’t already have a Google account, you’ll need to sign up for one, since it’s required to do various things on Android devices, such as purchasing apps and music from the Google Play Store.
There are actually many ways to move your data but we’re recommending methods that are relatively simple.
Contacts
If you have a Google account and your contacts are synced to Gmail, all you have to do is enter your account information during the set-up process on your Android phone, and they will automatically transfer to your new device.
Use iCloud
- On your iPhone, go to Settings then iCloud and turn on Contacts. This will sync your address book to Apple’s cloud service.
- On your computer, go to You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. and enter your Apple ID and password, and select Contacts from the main page.
- In the lower left-hand corner, click on the wheel icon and choose Select All. Click on the wheel again and select Export vCard.
- Next, go to You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. on your Web browser, or log in to your Gmail account, and select Contacts from the Gmail drop-down menu in the upper left-hand corner. You can then Select More and then Import.
- Go to the place where you saved the VCF file above and Gmail will then import your contacts.
- To merge any duplicate entries, choose More at the top of the Google Contacts page and select Find & merge duplicates.
There are many third-party apps that can help you sync your contacts from the iPhone to Android.
- Once installed on your iPhone, an app will ask for access to your Contacts. Once you agree, tap Backup. The app then creates a VCF file of all your contacts.
- Enter your email address when prompted and then open that message on your Android phone to automatically import your contacts from the attached VCF card.
There are a couple of different ways to sync your iPhone’s calendar with your Android device, third party apps like You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. make it simple.
- Make sure your iPhone calendar is synced to iCloud by going to Settings, iCloud and Calendar on your iPhone.
- Install the app on your Android device, and enter your Apple ID login and password.
- Select which calendars you’d like to sync with your new device, and tap Finish.
As with contacts and calendar there are a number of options for transferring your music.
Google Music Manager
- Download and install You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. on your computer. You’ll have to enter a credit card number during the set-up process, but you won’t be charged anything for the standard service.
- After launching the app, a pop-up window will ask what you would like to do. Select ‘Upload songs to Google Play.
- Another prompt will ask, ‘Where do you keep your music collection? Select iTunes or another folder if you keep your files elsewhere.
- Google Music Manager will then show you how many songs and playlists it found, and ask whether you want to upload them all or manually select them yourself.
- You’ll also have the option of setting up the software so that it automatically uploads songs that you add to iTunes in the future.
If you don’t want to use Google’s software, or don’t feel releasing your card details you can manually transfer your songs from iTunes to your new Android phone.
- Connect your Android phone to your computer via a USB cable. If you’re using a Mac, you’ll also need to install the free Android File Transfer app.
- If you’re on a Windows PC, locate your Android device and your music files. Then drag the desired files from one folder to the other.
- Tip: On a Windows PC your music flies will most likely be found under Music then iTunes then iTunes Media and finally Music.
There are many ways to move your photos from iPhone to Android, including the drag-and-drop method and third-party apps such as You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., and you can also do it via Google+. Tom’s Guide, a respected tech site provides You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. to achieving this with Google +. Given that you’re moving to Android you might want to consider this.
However, as an alternative you can also use a service like Dropbox. This is very simple too.
- Install Dropbox on both your iPhone and Android device. Sign up for an account if you don’t already have one.
- On your iPhone, go to the Files tab and tap on the three circles in the upper right-hand corner. Select Upload File, Photos and select the images from your iPhone.
- Go to the Dropbox app on your Android phone, log in to your account and navigate to where you saved the images. You can then view them from the cloud and download to the Photos app.
This is one area where you might have a bit of a problem – in short you can’t transfer your iPhone apps to Android.
While the iPhone might be a useful tool it’s a proprietary platform which means iPhone apps can’t be used on any other platform. Ever.
So you’ll need to download, and possibly buy your favourite apps again. However with many apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Kindle, you just need to enter your account information into the Android version and all of your data will be there.
Security warning
Globally Android is a far more popular platform for smartphones than Apples’ iOS. It’s an open platform which is useful for developers and operating system advances, and Android devices are not as expensive as Apple.
However, Android devices are also a growing target for häçkers. Recent research by German firm G Data revealed that malware targeting Android devices is growing at an exponential rate and You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now..
If anything this emphasises the importance of You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. given that the problem is only going to get worse.
Switching from Android to iPhone
Perhaps you’ve had enough of Android devices and have got your mind set on a shiny new iPhone. Well, the good news is that a new app called You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now. is now available in the Google Play Store.
Developed by Apple, the launch of Move to iOS from Android also dovetails with the launch of the new Apple operating system, You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now..
Clearly Apple is doing all it can to encourage people to move from Android to iPhone and this app certainly makes the difference.
A few weeks ago we would have put together a list of the steps you need to take to transfer contacts, photos and so on but not any longer. However, you’ve got to have an Apple device that is running iOS 9.
- When moving from an Android device to an iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch with iOS 9, the setup process now prompts new users to move data from Android if switching platforms.
- To complete this process, the setup process on iOS will offer a code to give Move to iOS for matching up the devices.
- On your Android device, you need to download Move to iOS from the Google Play Store.
- You then launch the app, tap Continue, agree to the terms and conditions and make sure you have your code from iOS, then enter it on the Android app.
However, please note ρáíd for Android apps are not supported, which means you might have to buy Apple versions of your apps – again.
Once you have completed the data selection process, the app creates a private Wi-Fi network used by both devices to wirelessly transfer content.
After the transfer process is complete, the Move to iOS app will let you know if any content was not transferred to your new iPhone or iPad. It will then cheekily recommend that you recycle your old Android phone at a local Apple Store.
The Move to iOS supports phones and tablets running Android 4.0 but to hammer home the point you’re going to need an Apple device running iOS 9 before you can use the app.
Please be aware that the launch of Move to iOS from Android You do not have permission to view the full content of this post. Log in or register now., clearly put out by the app, and keen to shoot it down in flames before it even got off the ground.
They see Apple like an enemy setting up camp in their shop (Google Play Store) and trying to entice Android fans over to Apple. The result was that the Move to iOS from Android app received scathing reviews when it launched in the play store. It’s worth keeping this in mind.